In this video from February 2011 by Jeff Novick, a WFPB dietician, in an ad for his Fast Food DVD it is calculated that the whole food, plant-based meals he makes in the DVD cost about $4 per person per day or less (watch from 1:30). Adjusting for inflation in 2013 that was about $132 a month. Extremely healthy, varied and inexpensive. 

Earthsave worked with the Sacramento Food Bank in 2011. This was the video they put up to raise funds for the project in March 2011. It describes who is going to be involved. This video shows some of the results, the video uploaded in November of 2011.

The challenges of hunger in New York City can be understood by knowing in 2012 a population greater than Dallas (1.4 million New Yorkers) relied on soup kitchens and pantries and a population greater than Chicago (2.9 million New Yorkers) experienced difficulty affording food.